Richard's Journal

Letter to Mary Turner, Chief Executive, Tiscali UK Limited

Matthew Davis, Customer Services Manager, Tiscali UK; Nathan Francis, General Manager, Consumer Affairs, Tiscali UK;
Joanne Davis, Complaints Department, Tiscali UK; Head of Tiscali Customer Services, Tiscali UK
Tiscali Customer Services, CARS, Frederickson International, Havant Borough Council
East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry

 

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Mary Turner
Chief Executive
Tiscali UK Limited
20 Broadwick Street
London, W1F 8HT

Ref: RLK1505
                                                                                                                                                                                               28th May 2008

Dear Mary Turner,


Problems with discontinuing Tiscali services and paying off the balance
Threats and slander from companies engaged by Tiscali despite payment being sent and cashing of cheques showing on my Bank Statements
Total incompetence of Tiscali “Customer Services” staff
 

At the end of 2007 I ended Tiscali services that were being paid on my Credit Card as that Card was being renewed, declining to provide Tiscali with the new card details and advising that I would settle the balance by cheque. That turned out to be a justified decision on my part as Tiscali, apparently, attempted to take money from me via my credit card, despite the services being cancelled.

What followed was many weeks of threats of cessation of services (I only wanted a dial-up residual arrangement anyway due to old E-mail addresses), then threats from two debt collecting agencies, despite me having sent cheques for the amounts invoiced. The first such debt collector threat was only two days after receiving the final invoice and the day on which I sent a cheque in response to that invoice; the huge sum of £8-69.

Those companies were Credit Recovery Solutions Limited (CARS) and Frederickson International Limited. While CARS were reasonable, for that sort of company, Frederickson’s staff insisted on calling me a debtor, despite me telling them that was only alleged by Tiscali, nothing like proven, and that I had a cassette recorder connected to the telephone.

Such behaviour ceased, suddenly, when I E-mailed Naomi Slade at CARS and pointed out that her company and Frederickson’s were demanding money with menaces, which is illegal, that Frederickson’s staff had also committed slander, asked her for full legal justification of their actions and Tiscali’s actions to take to my local Chamber of Commerce legal team. Obviously, someone at Tiscali called off Frederickson’s as well, as I have heard nothing further from them either, but did not have the courtesy to contact me (nor have CARS or Frederickson’s for that matter), completely in line with Tiscali’s atrocious approach to customers.

My most recent communications from Tiscali are a letter from Tiscali customer services and a statement of account.

The letter goes on about no record being found of a payment by cheque for £8-69 and a request that another cheque be sent, even though my bank statement shows it was cashed, albeit several weeks after the cheque was sent. In addition, the letter was written by someone who cannot spell, whose English is atrocious (my standard of English, while not perfect, is 1950s/1960s Grammar School/High School, Chartered Engineer, author standard), cannot construct and set out a letter and cannot even address an envelope properly (photocopies enclosed).

The statement of account was addressed to “Mr Unkown Unknown, 19 19 Blenheim Gardens” and the content was gibberish (photocopies enclosed). It appears to refer, in part, to a payment made months ago and, overall, looks as if you owe me money, though in time that could have been far more usefully spent elsewhere you have cost me a great deal more.

So far, this nonsense has required me to spend the equivalent of at least two days, as well as several expensive telephone calls, sorting it out, or at least attempting to do so. My losses, even allowing for lecturing preparation time, which is not paid, amount to a minimum of several hundred Pounds equivalent.

Tiscali must have spent at least a few hundred Pounds chasing a couple of sums of £8-69, even though payment was sent. Your customer care is as appalling as your accounting system and level of education and ability of your staff. I strongly recommend a complete overhaul of both your customer services, or what passes for them, as well as your recruitment policy.

My situation is that I need the Internet to progress past a difficult situation, though am now pleased, relieved, that I chose not to install Tiscali Broadband.

Once past that situation I shall be giving presentations on my business experiences, among other things, which I expect to begin in the next academic year. Those experiences include having five years wrecked by a corrupt Council (Havant Borough Council) that was involved in deception, fraud, misappropriation of European Funds, etc., (not just with my project) and the cover-up which followed; nothing published locally, thanks to help from an editor, and me not able to obtain assistance from the local Business Link (represented at the meetings involving me project and on the overseeing Board the Council run organisation). That is all on the Internet and will be part of many forthcoming presentations, interviews, articles, etc.; as will my experiences with Tiscali, though it will take me a couple more weeks to put this letter and all the other Tiscali related correspondence on one of my Web Sites. (My legal advice is that you cannot libel or slander a public body, only individuals within it.)

I am gradually getting past the Council and others via my unique non-engineering side, Barbara Ford-Hammond’s book “Past Life Tourism – Gateway to Bridging Your Past and Future”, in which we feature, and my own forthcoming book, “Remembering Lorelei”; the links will be in the version of this letter appearing on my Web Site.

Havant Council having been using my other involvements against me, though only behind my back; see “The Well-Wisher” page of “Richard’s Journal” (www.richardsjournal.co.uk). They are scared witless of me being in the public domain. Tiscali, CARS and Frederickson’s suddenly backed off the heavy handed approach when I said I would be consulting the Chamber of Commerce legal people. Like the Council and their colleagues, Tiscali and their associates display the classic combination of bully and coward. I will be forwarding details of my experiences with Tiscali, CARS and Frederickson’s to East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and to Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce as excellent reasons to join such organisations.

I will be using these letters and E-mails, as well as the telephone recordings, in my presentations.

In the meantime, is there any chance that you can find a single competent person within Tiscali to finalise my account and bring it to a resounding end.

I would also like details of any correspondence about me sent to any third parties by Tiscali, CARS or Frederickson’s. I asked Francis Orozco, at Tiscali Customer Services, for that long ago, but, completely in line with Tiscali’s customer care standards, I received no reply.


Yours sincerely,

 

Richard L. King


Richard King, BTech, MTech, CEng, MIMechE
Consultant Engineer
RLK Associates
Visiting University Lecturer in Engineering and Materials
Associate College Lecturer in Engineering Science and Materials

Member of East Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry
 
Healer, Psychic, Mystic
Member of the Scientific and Medical Network


Copies:
(Details from PC Advisor Forums, Tiscali Worst ISP, etc.)

Matthew Davis, Customer Services Manager, Tiscali UK Limited, 20 Broadwick Street, London, W1F 8HT

Nathan Francis, General Manager, Consumer Affairs, Tiscali UK Limited, 20 Broadwick Street, London, W1F 8HT

Joanne Davis, Complaints Department, Tiscali UK Limited, 20 Broadwick Street, London, W1F 8HT

Head of Tiscali Customer Services, Tiscali UK Ltd, PO Box 7206, Kiln Farm, MK14 6XG